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3 Easy Steps to Selling Used CDs

Technology + Gear
by Matador Creators Nov 24, 2011
Maybe it’s time to get rid of those Spandau Ballet CDs and the East 17 collection you cherished several years ago.

OVER 2500 TONNES OF CDs are thrown out each year – imagine how much money could have been raised and the amount of landfill space that could have been saved if we opted for selling instead of trashing.

1. Check the condition

Are they scratched? Are the cases shiny? Most buyers will only accept CDs if they are in good condition with cases which look like new. If not, this can be fixed by popping out the artwork and album info and placing this into new cases, which are inexpensive to purchase in bulk.

Scratched discs can normally be fixed by lightly cleaning with furniture polish or toothpaste and a soft cloth – a glasses cleaning cloth is ideal. If you use toothpaste, rinse in warm water afterwards and gently dry with a cotton swab.

2. Maximize profits

You can make up to a few pounds/dollars per disc, so selling when you have five to ten or more discs is going to be beneficial to your profits. Don’t spend money on selling them if you don’t have to. For example, swap cases from newer discs that you plan to keep with the ones you intend to sell, instead of buying empty cases.

If you don’t want to pay for postage, try a music buying service like musicMagpie that will arrange for a courier to come get your CDs or pay for the postage to send them in.

3. Make the sale

There are several ways to sell your CDs online and in person. Traditionally, going to your local music store or pawn-broker was perhaps the way to go about it, but these days it’s more common to use websites such as ebay. However, these sites require more effort and you will have to check prices often to see how much each particular CD is currently selling for, then post each CD to its respective winner.

And if the music is so terrible no one wants to hear it anymore, you can always recycle them into car headlight reflectors.

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